Birthday
by picimadar
Summary: After seven years of dealing with only pranks and anonymous presents as her birthday gifts from Heero, Relena is given her greatest birthday surprise yet. EDITED DUE TO CONTENT POLICING BY FF. FULL VERSION WILL BE REPOSTED ONCE I FIND A NEW HOST SITE.


A/N: THIS IS AN EDITED VERSION BECAUSE I'M NOT GETTING BANHAMMERED OVER FF DECIDING TO ACTUALLY ENFORCE THEIR B.S. POLICIES REGARDING 'ADULT' MATERIAL. The full version will be posted elsewhere once I find a new home for my work.

Enjoy!  
-picimadar

**Birthday**

"Minister? There's another package here for you," Relena's secretary, Malorie, said timidly, half hiding behind the door.

"Oh, just bring it in," Relena said, beckoning her forward with a wave of her hand, cradling her head in the other. Her desk, chairs, shelves and floor were covered in a myriad of boxes in various states of openness, bubble wrap, tissue paper and colourful wrapping and ribbon strewed about. Malorie stepped around the boxes carefully.

"Where should I-" she stared, but Relena just pointed to the floor in front of her. "Alright, well, let me know if you need anything else, Minister," she practically whispered as she backed out of the room. Relena nodded, not taking her eyes off of the paperwork before her until the door closed.

Sighing, she put her pen down and surveyed her office once again, rubbing her temples. It was her twenty-second birthday, a day that she should have been spending at home or with friends, drinking, cavorting and enjoying the beautiful spring day. Instead, she had been called into the office, much as the previous years, to continue working on one inane task or another.

Relena pushed away from her desk and approached the newest box, picking her way between the others in her high-heels. She picked it up; looking the box over, wrinkling her nose as she realized it was addressed from a coworker she particularly disliked. Like many of the other boxes coming from citizens and politicians she barely knew, it was uninteresting.

She was waiting for something in particular, although she didn't know quite what.

The mystery gifts were somewhat of a running joke among her friends, the few people who understood their significance. For her seventeenth birthday, there had been an enormous inflated teddy bear, at least three storeys tall, perched on the roof of her mansion. No one could answer how it had been installed overnight with no evidence; Relena had blamed Duo for weeks, harassing him for answers before realizing he was innocent.

For her eighteenth, only a note had come, asking her to go to a certain restaurant on a certain night. When she arrived, all her friends were there, friends she had not seen in years, and a single bear much like the one Heero Yuy had given her years before. None of them knew who had been the originator of the notes, but they cajoled and carried on, giving Relena her first true birthday party in a long time.

For her nineteenth and twentieth, there had been other bears, often accompanied with other small gifts; dresses, perfumes and earrings that Relena had sighed over while window-shopping, but didn't dare to buy herself.

On her twenty-first birthday, Relena had been due to travel to space suddenly, and she had been anxious to miss one of Heero's yearly tokens. When she arrived, her hotel room was filled with miniature bears, their many-coloured ribbons decorating the furniture. Opening her luggage, her bag was entirely filled with the bears despite passing through airport security and being filled with clothes by her that morning. Her clothes were found in her hotel room dresser, perfectly folded, more bears littering the drawers. Malorie had called her in absolute panic, her home and office having been similarly invaded; to this day, a year later, Relena was still turning up the small toys from forgotten corners.

Today, she waited, yet no gift had come. Flowers and gifts from a few of her friends began to arrive, and she had dinner with her friends to look forward to after she finished her work, but the thought of missing the gift made her chest clench with anxiety.

They were more than just gifts. They were her only indication that the man she loved most was still alive.

Relena returned to her desk, putting the gifts aside, struggling to work. Malorie put a few more packages into her room over the course of the day, the flowers and deliveries beginning to take up room in the lobby outside before the Minister sighed with finality, signed the bottom line of her document, filed it and left her office.

Her car delivered her to the restaurant her anonymous note had directed her and her friends to before; it had since become a tradition for them to meet there at least once a year, getting to spend some quality time with each other despite living at different ends of the Earth Sphere. Their benefactor had excellent taste; Relena always enjoyed the food and atmosphere, but never would have entered the place had it not been for Heero's suggestion.

"There's our Princess," Duo said, getting up from the table and taking her jacket, hugging her tightly. "Missed you," he said, winking at her.

"Same to you," Relena smiled, hugging Hilde and Quatre, saying hello to the others. "How was the flight?"

"Good! Well, Quatre boosted us on his private shuttle, you know, so we flew in style," Duo said, Hilde rolling her eyes.

"Yes, it was quite nice of him to put up with you for that long. Next time we're giving you Benedryl so you sleep through the flight and leave the poor pilot alone." The group laughed as Duo stuck his tongue out at his wife, still smiling.

They continued to chat late into the night, enjoying their dinners and numerous nightcaps, giving Relena her gifts, all of which she loved. When the night came to a close they parted ways, most of her party guests staying in town for a few days, touring and sightseeing. Relena returned home, the thought of her still-missing gift returning to her mind.

She asked the steward what packages had arrived for her, and he told her all had been placed in her anterooms, awaiting her to open them. Gleefully she ran upstairs and began looking over the boxes and gift bags. An hour later, she had turned out numerous valuable and beautiful things, a shipment from her brother and Noin, but nothing from Heero.

Her disappointment was immense, and she blinked back tears, berating herself for becoming so attached to a man she hadn't seen in five years. Sighing, she wiped at her eyes and entered her bedroom.

"You're so stupid, Relena," she whispered into the dark.

"You shouldn't talk to yourself like that," Heero whispered back.

Relena choked back a shriek as he turned on the light, bathing the room in a dim glow. She simply stared at him for a few moments, disbelieving, before he walked over to her, took her face in his hands and kissed her.

She arched her back and pressed herself to him, running her hands over his chest and through his hair. He stopped briefly, keeping her face in his hands and looking into her eyes, both their breaths intermingling as he gauged her response before pulling off his jacket and shirt and taking hold of her again, guiding her back to the bed as they continued to kiss passionately.

The blonde woman giggled slightly as Heero pushed her gently back onto the bed, climbing on top of her. She arched her back and held up her arms for him as he pulled her sweater over her head, her long hair pooling around her shoulders. Reaching down, she unbuckled Heero's belt and struggled slightly to unzip his pants as he kissed his way from her temple to her collarbone, running hands along her hourglass frame.

Finally the stubborn button gave way and Relena quickly pulled off Heero's remaining clothing, staring at him unabashedly as he reached underneath her, unzipping her skirt and similarly stripping her. She blushed slightly as he kissed his way back up her pale abdomen, crushing her chest against him and removing her bra, casting it onto the floor with the rest of their abandoned coverings.

Relena sighed as Heero's hands cupped her breasts, his breath sighing with appreciation as he teased her gently, his lips smiling as he pressed them against hers. Relena retaliated, running her hands low on his abdomen, grinning back wickedy as he gasped into her mouth.

Having the element of surprise, she rolled them over, straddling his hips, rubbing her skin against his from chest to hips.

"Relena," Heero whispered, gently pushing her hair over one shoulder. "Are you sure you-"

"Shh," Relena answered, silencing him with a kiss. Their union was swift, clumsy, careful and perfect all in the same moment.

"What took you so long?" she finally asked breathlessly, smiling up at him as they rested.

"That's really all you have to ask me?" Heero asked, moving away from her and leaning on an elbow.

"I already know everything I need to," Relena whispered, "except one thing."

"And what's that?"

She looked away, biting her lip. "Are you staying?"

"I'm done with running," Heero answered. "I'm here as long as you want me to be."

Relena smiled, kissed him, and lay back, sighing. "I want you here forever."

"Happy birthday," Heero answered. Sitting up, he reached into her bedside drawer and passed her one of her most treasured possessions: the original bear he had given her for her fifteenth birthday. Where the fur had become worn away it was now soft and downy, its button eyes now gleaming, a new red ribbon around its neck.

Relena took it from his hands and held it to her chest. "The happiest birthday."


End file.
